Best Places to Visit in Singapore – Hawker Centre
Singapore is known for its vibrant hawker centres, offering a wide array of delicious, affordable street food that reflects the city’s multicultural heritage. Here is a list of must-visit hawker centres for an authentic Singaporean dining experience.
La Pa Sat (Hawker)
La Pa Sat is one of Singapore’s most iconic hawker centres. It is located in the heart of Singapore – in the central business district making it super easy to access the hawker centre via public transport or even walkable if you are staying around this area when you visit Singapore..
It is best known for its satay street and hawker food. Be prepared to eat well for an affordable price. You’ll find delicious grilled skewers of meats like beef, chicken, and lamb served with spicy peanut sauce.
Aside from satay foods, La Pa Sat offers a diverse range of other dishes such as Hainanese Chicken Rice, Char Kway Teow, Laksa, dim sum, Indian Roti, BBQ Seafood and even some Korean, Japanese and Western foods.
Many hawker centres mainly accept cash but during my last visit in June 2024, some food stalls started to accept card payments. This is great since I don’t normally carry cash and prefer a contactless payment since it is quicker.
In my recent visit to La Pa Sat, I tried the Surf and Turf platter which included 10x BBQ prawns, 5x satay chicken skewers, 5x satay beef skewers, 1x BBQ giant calamari and 1x rice cake. In total, it cost SGD $35 for two people. It was a big feed between two people and was left so full. The flavours were strong and enjoyed it overall. The satay meat skewers were tender and cooked to perfection. Also, since the prawn skewers still had the shells on them, the staff gave us gloves to peel the shells to avoid getting our hands dirty made it easier to eat the prawns.
Tips:
- The satay street usually opens in the evening and the main food hall is open throughout the day
- Bring pocket tissues since they don’t provide tissues
More details:
- Address: 18 Raffles Quay, Singapore 048582
- Opening hours: 24 hours every day
- Price: $
- Average: SGD $10 – $20 (AUD $12 – $22) per person
Zion Riverside Food Centre
Zion Riverside Food Centre is a smaller Hawker Centre compared to the other larger ones in Singapore. Despite this, the food quality is just as good and possibly slightly better. It is located close to the Great World City shopping mall and is easily accessible via public transport. Zion is in an area that is more residential and you’ll find locals eating here compared to the larger touristy ones.
It is best known for its Char Kway Teow. Be prepared to eat well for a cheap price.
In my recent visit Zion Riverside Food Centre, I specifically visited to try the Char Kway Teow at No. 18 Zion Road Fried Kway Teow. They are known to have the best Char Kway Teow and it is also Michelin recommended.
The price vs the portion was so worth it. It is SGD $6 for a small / SGD $8 for a medium / SGD $10 for a large. The takeaway packaging is so authentic using butcher paper to wrap up the Char Kway Teow.
Overall, I really enjoyed the strong flavours and it tastes so good. I highly recommend if you plan to visit.
For something refreshing, the drink stall next to No. 18 Zion Road Fried Kway Teow – 848 Fresh Fruit & Sugar Cane June has a wide selection of fruit juices and it is so cheap. I bought the starfruit juice for SGD $2.50. Starfruit is similar to apples but has a lighter and fresher taste.
Tips:
- Be prepared to wait in line since it usually forms a larger queue or visit early
- Bring pocket tissues since they don’t provide tissues
More details:
- Address: 70 Zion Rd, Singapore 247792
- Opening hours: 8AM – 10PM Everyday
- Price: $
- Average: SGD $1 – $10 (AUD $1 – $11) per person
Both hawker centres offer great food, but Zion Riverside Food Centre is more of a low-key, local favourite, while La Pa Sat is a larger, tourist-friendly landmark with a rich history and more diverse food options.
Here are a few other Hawker centre options that I have been recommended but haven’t visited yet.
- Maxwell Food Centre – Famous for Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice and a wide variety of traditional local dishes.
- Newton Food Centre – Known more as a late-night hawker with seafood and satay. Also, note that Crazy Rich Asians was filmed here.
- Old Airport Road Food Centre – One of the oldest and most beloved hawker centres, known for Char Kway Teow, Lor Mee, and other local favourites
- Chinatown Complex Food Centre – The largest hawker centre in Singapore, home to the Michelin-starred Hawker Chan and many other Chinese delicacies.
Here are more food recommendations
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Tags: Travel, Explore, Singapore, Asian Food, Things to do in Singapore, Places to visit in Singapore, Food, Hawker centres, Ultimate Singapore food experience, Food in Singapore, What to eat in Singapore
